Some meats have a limited market acceptance because of their strong flavour, or in some cases the unacceptable smell associated with the meat fat. Lamb is an example of this as it is not acceptable to many people and in particular is not readily marketable in Asia.
There is also concern over the level of fat and cholesterol in foodstuffs. In addition to concern over the presence of saturated fats in our diet, it is likely that legislation will be enacted in some countries which will require cholesterol content to be shown along with other nutritional values when the foodstuff is sold.
The primary source of cholesterol in foodstuffs is lipid-containing food such as meat, either red or white, fish and dairy products. Offal, such as brains or kidney, has a high cholesterol content but a relatively low lipid content.
The lipid components of interest are those known as neutral lipids. This class of lipids contains: mono-, di- and tri-acylglycerides, collectively known as fat; free and esterified cholesterol, and other sterols; free fatty acids, fatty alcohols and wax esters. Of most interest are the fat and cholesterol components.
These lipid components may also influence the flavour of the food, especially if the fat becomes rancid. Oxidation of fat destabilises the fat molecules giving rise to unpleasant flavours. The amount and type of fat present in the food is one of the limiting factors in storage of meats. Meats with a high proportion of unsaturated fats--fish, poultry, pork, lamb, and veal, --cannot be kept as long as beef. Some meats e.g. lamb because of their fat content have an unacceptable flavour.